Nitrites and Nitrates slightly higher after water change?

[rydin4life]

I just started a new 20L tank with 12 white cloud mountain minnows, a few gobi dessert rocks, and some fake plants.  I'm running a Seachem Tidal 55 (sponge media, polishing pad, purigen, and matrix) and a small sponge filter.  The tank was started with Seachem Prime, Fritz Zyme 7, and some filter "squeezings" from a well-established tank.  The first week my ammonia and nitrite levels were at 0 and nitrates were just barely showing on the test strip.

I did a 50% water change after 8 days just to clean up some things and now I'm showing nitrites and my nitrates are slightly higher.  Both are still on the lower end, but I'm wondering why the increase at all.  I treated my water change with Seachem Prime before refilling the tank and only rinsed/squeezed out my filter media in the old tank water before dumping it.

[Tony s]

Did test the tank before the water change. It’s possible both were there all along. I wouldn’t worry about the nitrate levels, but nitrites in any level causes damage. The prime will stabilize it, but you’ll need to do another change tomorrow to eliminate it. Check again before the change. It’s possible it’s not quite cycled yet. I’ve been down that road before. And you may want to check your tap water for both. Just to be sure. 

[rydin4life]

I did test prior - I didn't test the new water going in though...are you thinking that there may have been nitrites/nitrates inthe tap water that registered?

[Tony s]

On 9/11/2024 at 12:09 PM, rydin4life said:

are you thinking that there may have been nitrites/nitrates inthe tap water that registered

It is a possibility. I've seen it before on here. Seen several instances of high ammonia as well

[rydin4life]

On 9/11/2024 at 12:14 PM, Tony s said:

It is a possibility. I've seen it before on here. Seen several instances of high ammonia as well

I did check my water right out of the tap - no ammonia, nitrite, or nitrate so that doesn't appear to be the issue.  I feed lightly and water tests during the first week were all good - will just keep an eye on it....just odd that those things registered after the water change.  

[Tony s]

On 9/11/2024 at 5:21 PM, rydin4life said:

I feed lightly and water tests during the first week were all good - will just keep an eye on it....just odd that those things registered after the water change.  

I agree, but odd stuff happens all the time. At least you caught it and can watch it for the next couple of weeks. So, new tank then? every possibility it wasn't quite ready to go. I know I've done that before. But if it wasn't it will be soon. As you say, just keep an eye on it.

 

 

[AtomicSunfish]

On 9/11/2024 at 8:54 AM, rydin4life said:

I just started a new 20L tank with 12 white cloud mountain minnows, a few gobi dessert rocks, and some fake plants.  I'm running a Seachem Tidal 55 (sponge media, polishing pad, purigen, and matrix) and a small sponge filter.  The tank was started with Seachem Prime, Fritz Zyme 7, and some filter "squeezings" from a well-established tank.  The first week my ammonia and nitrite levels were at 0 and nitrates were just barely showing on the test strip.

I did a 50% water change after 8 days just to clean up some things and now I'm showing nitrites and my nitrates are slightly higher.  Both are still on the lower end, but I'm wondering why the increase at all.  I treated my water change with Seachem Prime before refilling the tank and only rinsed/squeezed out my filter media in the old tank water before dumping it.

It’s great that you seeded your tank, so you’re not starting from zero. However, at only 8 days old, it’s still not established. Water changes may be necessary in the early stages of cycling, but I don’t do any gravel vac or media rinsing until 2 months after setting up a new or disturbed tank. The bacteria are still colonizing all that surface area, but cleaning off media removes beneficial bacteria, and you don’t have enough to spare just yet.

Others mentioned there could be nitrites/nitrates in your tap water, but your testing indicates that’s not the case. So, I think you could be seeing a nitrogen spike following a disturbance to your still small populations of beneficial bacteria. I think they just need time to recover. And again, I wouldn’t disturb them for a couple months during your water changes.

Edited September 12 by AtomicSunfish

[rydin4life]

@Tony s @AtomicSunfish

Should I do small daily or every-other-day water changes (like 25%) daily to get those nitrites/nitrates out of the water?

To confirm, when  I did my water change last week, I did "shake out" the prefilter sponge and filter media in the dirty tank water I took out.  the rocks and fake plants I have weren't touched, so I thought I was being pretty gentle, but again - could just be that since it is so new, it just needs time to recover.  

[AtomicSunfish]

On 9/12/2024 at 9:58 AM, rydin4life said:

@Tony s @AtomicSunfish

Should I do small daily or every-other-day water changes (like 25%) daily to get those nitrites/nitrates out of the water?

To confirm, when  I did my water change last week, I did "shake out" the prefilter sponge and filter media in the dirty tank water I took out.  the rocks and fake plants I have weren't touched, so I thought I was being pretty gentle, but again - could just be that since it is so new, it just needs time to recover.  

White cloud mountain minnows are pretty hardy. With tough river fish like that, I would do a 60% water change to really dilute the waste, then leave them alone for as long I can, until they need another water change.

I remember years ago, when I was young and ignorant, I used a brand new kitchen sponge as an algae scraper. What I did not know, was that they come coated with some kind of detergent. That makes them good for cleaning dishes, but positively poisonous for fish. I woke up the next morning to see my cichlids gasping for breath at the bottom of the tank, and my sunfish dead. I immediately did a 90% water change, and all the cichlids made a full recovery.

I’m not saying ammonia and nitrite need that big of an intervention. I’m just saying, depending on the species, it can be effective to just immediately dilute the toxin and then let the fish recover.

PS - Don’t be surprised if you get diatoms (brown algae) growing with frequent water changes, since that adds silica to the system (which they need for their test, or shell). No worries, though; just scrape it off, and eventually they’ll decline again with less frequent water changes.

Edited September 12 by AtomicSunfish

[rydin4life]

On 9/12/2024 at 11:23 AM, AtomicSunfish said:

White cloud mountain minnows are pretty hardy. With tough river fish like that, I would do a 60% water change to really dilute the waste, then leave them alone for as long I can, until they need another water change.

I remember years ago, when I was young and ignorant, I used a brand new kitchen sponge as an algae scraper. What I did not know, was that they come coated with some kind of detergent. That makes them good for cleaning dishes, but positively poisonous for fish. I woke up the next morning to see my cichlids gasping for breath at the bottom of the tank, and my sunfish dead. I immediately did a 90% water change, and all the cichlids made a full recovery.

I’m not saying ammonia and nitrite need that big of an intervention. I’m just saying, depending on the species, it can be effective to just immediately dilute the toxin and then let the fish recover.

PS - Don’t be surprised if you get diatoms (brown algae) growing with frequent water changes, since that adds silica to the system (which they need for their test, or shell). No worries, though; just scrape it off, and eventually they’ll decline again with less frequent water changes.

 

You may have just hit the nail on the head.  When I did my water change recently, I wiped out the tank with a sponge I bought at Walmart - it had no detergents listed nor any coating that it mentioned, however I just went over the inner plastic packaging and in tiny black print it stated "not for aquarium use".  As such, I just did a 75% water change, treated the new water with Prime, and I had a partial bottle of Fritz Zyme 7 in my cabinet, so I dosed with that as well just for good measure.  

[Tony s]

On 9/12/2024 at 12:26 PM, rydin4life said:

I just went over the inner plastic packaging and in tiny black print it stated "not for aquarium use"

things like that make me completely paranoid. But reading and learning here I've found out that mr clean magic erasers work great. as long as they're unscented.

[rydin4life]

On 9/12/2024 at 12:29 PM, Tony s said:

things like that make me completely paranoid. But reading and learning here I've found out that mr clean magic erasers work great. as long as they're unscented.

I feel like a total idiot for not knowing that...but hopefully a 25% water change yesterday and a 75% today plus the addition of more Fritz Zyme 7 will take care of things.

[Tony s]

On 9/12/2024 at 12:39 PM, rydin4life said:

I feel like a total idiot for not knowing

not at all. We're all learning here. Sometimes we mess up. Then we learn and we do better. 

[AtomicSunfish]

On 9/12/2024 at 11:39 AM, rydin4life said:

I feel like a total idiot for not knowing that...but hopefully a 25% water change yesterday and a 75% today plus the addition of more Fritz Zyme 7 will take care of things.

Wow, I’m glad I mentioned my misadventures with the kitchen sponge! Hey, I made an idiot move then, and this time it was your turn! 😉

Seriously though, live and learn. For future reference, use only aquarium supplies, or things you know are not permeated with any sort of toxic chemicals. It’s definitely worth the cost. Hope things turn around real quick!